ever的用法
Ways to use the word "ever"
刘立军 供稿
TRANSCRIPT
Have you ever noticed the number of times that a native English speaker uses the word "ever"?
Ever is an adverb that we Americans say a lot. Here's today's question, from Zanoni in Venezuela: Hello. I would like to get some tips about the right usage of the adverb "ever." Thanks in advance.
Hello, Zanoni! There are many ways to use the word "ever," but some of them are very formal, less modern, or more common in British English. So it might help more if I tell you how Americans most often use the word.
There are a few ways we use it.
The first way means "at any time." For this meaning, we often use it in question form:
Have you ever visited Zanzibar?
Do you ever wonder how you will look in 10 years?
What is the best film you have ever seen?
Note that the third example uses the superlative adjective "best."
We can also use "ever" in statements, such as when you are describing something with a superlative or comparative adjective.
The Ring is the best horror film I've ever seen.
The cost of living is higher than it has ever been.
In negative statements, we can use the term "not ever" to mean "not at any time." But "never" is much more common. Listen to the following sentences that have the same meaning:
He doesn't ever let his mother finish speaking.
He never lets his mother finish speaking.
But with negative words, like "nobody," "no one," "rarely" and "hardly," we use "ever" instead of "never." Let's listen:
No one here ever cleans up after themselves.
I rarely ever carry money with me.
Americans also use "ever" in the expression "ever since." It means "continually or often from a past time until now," which is similar to the meaning of "since." But using "ever" adds strength to the statement. Listen:
Ever since I started stretching, my back has felt much better.
You can also say it like this, with the same meaning:
My back has felt much better ever since I started stretching.
And that's Ask a Teacher.
VOCABULARY
1. clean up: to remove dirt, etc. from somewhere 打扫（或清除）干净。例如：Who's going to clean up this mess? 这么又脏又乱的，谁来清理？
2. ever since: continuously since the time mentioned 自从；自……以后；从……起。例如：He's had a car ever since he was 18. 他从18岁起就有汽车了。
QUESTIONS
Read the statements. Then listen to the news and decide whether the statements are true (T) or false (F). Then correct the false statements.
1. We seldom use “ever” in question form when it means “at any time.”
2. We can also use "ever" in statements, such as when you are describing something with a superlative or comparative adjective.
3. In negative statements, we can use the term "not ever" to mean "not at any time." But "never" is less common.
4. But with negative words, like "nobody," "no one," "rarely" and "hardly," we use "never" instead of "ever."
5. The British also use "ever" in the expression "ever since."
KEY
Read the statements. Then listen to the news and decide whether the statements are true (T) or false (F). Then correct the false statements.
(F) 1. We seldom use “ever” in question form when it means “at any time.” （正确表达） We often use “ever” in question form when it means “at any time.”
(T) 2. We can also use "ever" in statements, such as when you are describing something with a superlative or comparative adjective.
(F) 3. In negative statements, we can use the term "not ever" to mean "not at any time." But "never" is less common.（正确表达）In negative statements, we can use the term "not ever" to mean "not at any time." But "never" is much more common.
(F) 4. But with negative words, like "nobody," "no one," "rarely" and "hardly," we use "never" instead of "ever." （正确表达）But with negative words, like "nobody," "no one," "rarely" and "hardly," we use "ever" instead of "never."
(F) 5. The British also use "ever" in the expression "ever since."（正确表达）Americans also use "ever" in the expression "ever since."
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